Walking The National Mall Part I

The National Mall in Washington DC divides into two parts. The East Mall runs a mile down a tree-lined esplanade bordered by flowery gardens from Capitol Hill to 15th Street. The East Mall is where the museums are, plus other more subtle pleasures of this large open space in the middle the nation’s capital. The West Mall starts where the East Mall stops at 15th Street and flows down to the Potomac River. The green-covered West Mall holds the best known of our national memorials.

The walk I describe in words and photos in this Part I of Walking The National Mall is the lower western third of the East Mall from 7th Street to 14th Street.

The walk starts in the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden at 7th Street and Constitution, continues west down Madison Drive on the National Mall to 14th Street. The hike makes several zigzags along the way, not just straight ahead. At 14th Street it turns around and heads east up Jefferson Drive returning to 7th Street where it ends. Depending on the fitness and/or the mindset of the walker, this hike could take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour or more. Be sure to go on to Part I Continued as the walk turns around and goes up the other side of the Mall.

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